INTERLEUKIN-8 RELEASED INTO THE CEREBROSPINAL-FLUID AFTER BRAIN INJURY IS ASSOCIATED WITH BLOOD-BRAIN-BARRIER DYSFUNCTION AND NERVE GROWTH-FACTOR PRODUCTION
T. Kossmann et al., INTERLEUKIN-8 RELEASED INTO THE CEREBROSPINAL-FLUID AFTER BRAIN INJURY IS ASSOCIATED WITH BLOOD-BRAIN-BARRIER DYSFUNCTION AND NERVE GROWTH-FACTOR PRODUCTION, Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism, 17(3), 1997, pp. 280-289
Interleukin (IL) 8 was measured in CSF of 14 patients with severe trau
matic brain injury. IL-8 levels were significantly higher in CSF (up t
o 8,000 pg/ml) than serum (up to 2,400 pg/ml) (p < 0.05), suggesting i
ntrathecal production. Maximal IL-8 values in CSF correlated with a se
vere dysfunction of the blood-brain barrier. Nerve growth factor (NGF)
was detected in CSF of 7 of 14 patients (range of maximal NGF: 62-12,
130 pg/ml). IL-8 concentrations were significantly higher in these pat
ients than in those without NGF (p < 0.01), CSF containing high IL-8 (
3,800-7,900 pg/ml) induced greater NGF production in cultured astrocyt
es (202-434 pg/ml) than samples with low IL-8 (600-1,000 pg/ml), which
showed a smaller NGF increase (0-165 pg/ml). Anti-IL-8 antibodies str
ongly reduced (52-100%) the release of NGF in the group of high IL-8,
whereas in the group with low IL-8, this effect was lower (0-52%). The
inability of anti-IL-8 antibodies to inhibit the synthesis of NGF com
pletely may depend on cytokines like tumor necrosis factor alpha and I
L-6 found in these CSF samples, which may act in association with IL-8
. Thus, IL-8 may represent a pivotal cytokine in the pathology of brai
n injury.